Fall' la la la la
by xhesaidshesaidx
Summary: Twoshot. On Mt.Baker,Troy spots something moving around in a snow filled gully.It doesn't take long for him to realize that it's a helpless woman floundering around in there. So whats he to do but come to her rescue? For- DanceDORK,xJamey,& zashleysilver
1. Part I: I Don't Need You

**Summary:** On a hiking trip up on Mt. Baker, Troy spots something moving around in a snow filled gully. It doesn't take long for him to realize that it's a helpless woman floundering around in there. So what's he to do, other than come to her rescue? AU-ish Troypay TWOshot dedicated to DanceDORK, xJamey, and zashleysilver.

**So, yeah,** this one is for xJamey, zashleysilver, and DanceDORK; three talented writers who have also always been three very great friends to me here on fanfiction. Merry Christmas to you guys, and also to everyone else who is reading this!

Also, right here- part one, isn't very 'Christmas-y', but part two is.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own High School Musical, or it's characters. I also don't own the song Deck the Halls, which is where the story title came from, or Mount Baker; which is in Washington.

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**'Fall'-la-la-la-la..**

**_Part I_**

"**_T_**roy," he he let out a tired grunt. "Seriously man, how do you find this _fun_ at _all_?!"

Troy Bolton rolled his eyes. "It's not supposed to be_ fun_, Chad. It's my _job_," he let out an exasperated groan when he turned back around and saw his best friend since pre school- many years ago, plop heavily down on the snowy surface of the mountain.

"Du_uuuu_de!" he groaned, kicking impatiently at the ground. A shower of snowdust gathered and shot directly at Chad Danforth's head, neck, and upper back.

"Come on, Troy, just a little break?" the twenty five year old whined before shaking his head quickly to rid his bouncy bush of hair of the snow Troy had kicked at him.

"Chad, you've been taking breaks every ten minutes. At this rate, it'll take hours to get even a third or fourth of the way up the mountain!" the blue eyed man snarled pointedly, his voice drenched with annoyance.

"Well then, this'll be the last one for _fifteen _minutes! Promise!", Chad said, holding up two gloved clad hands and then patting his chest in a 'cross my heart' way.

"_Fine_!" Troy gave in unhappily, throwing himself on the ground next to his friend. "You know for a basketball player, you're pretty damned lazy, Danforth," he muttered.

"When it comes to climbing up Mount Baker for hours on end, I'll admit that, yes, I am," Chad admitted. "But seriously man, this mountain is...." he reached into the pocket of his navy blue jacket and pulled out the brochure Troy had given him before they'd started their climb. "Three thousand, two hundred, and eighty five meters high up in elevation, that's...." his dark almond eyes studied the paper a little bit more, "ten thousand, seven hundred, and seventy eight feet. I can't believe you're willing to climb all that all at once, man. You can't be for real!"

"Not all of it!" Troy quickly defended. "Just enough to get some good above and below shots," he said, holding up his camera. Troy was a professional photographer, and his next project was all about volcanoes and mountains- mountain peaks, ranges, snowy or dirty, lava, you name it. Currently he was working on getting snapshots of the beautiful Mount Baker in northern Washington, but it didn't help that his potential partner that he'd warned long beforehand that it wouldn't be easy, had been behind him yapping and complaining about it for the last hour or so.

"Got any gronola bars left?" Chad asked, digging around in Troy's black backpack.

"I don't know, look."

"What does it look like I'm doin', fool?"

Troy shook his head but didn't respond. Instead, he took a quick glance at his water proof watch and tsk-tsked at the time.

"Look man, we've gotta get movin' within the next five minutes or it'll throw us completely off schedule. I wanna be done and outta here at least within the next two or three hours."

"Schedule?! We're on a schedule now?!" Chad exclaimed.

"We_ have_ been all along but it's not been working out so well since you just keep on dragging your ass," Troy snapped, grabbing his thermos out of his friend's hand that he'd picked up out of his backpack.

"I'm not dragging anything, Bolton. But I really don't see what your hurry is. We've got all the time in the world, no need to be in any rush," Chad responded, peeling the wrapper off of a chocolate chunk chewy gronola bar.

"Oh sure," Troy remarked sarcastically, "let's just sit around in the snow and freeze our asses off. Then tomorrow morning, _maybe_ when we finally finish, try walking back to the car with _frostbite_!" he spat and took a short swig of his luckily and somehow still warm coffee. Hooray for metal thermoses.

"Oh, frostbite my ass-" Chad started with equal sarcasm in his voice.

"That's exactly what'll happen!" Troy cut him off.

"Oh, you know what Bolton-" the afro-headed man began again. But Troy was no longer listening.

"What the--" he paused midsentence, slowly rising to his feet- taking his camera with him. Was it just him, or was something gray poking out above a snowbank several meters away from them? and was that gray thing....was it...._moving_?

He blinked, moving closer to get a better look. Gripping his camera tightly in his hands, he raised it to his eyes, ready to take a picture in case this ended up being something interesting and worth it.

"What, Troy? What is it, man?" Chad asked, now aware that something was a bit off because of his pal's sudden change in behavior. Ten seconds ago they were bickering like they were ten again and now Chad was watching cluelessly as Troy advanced slowly toward something with his camera ready.

Ignoring his friend, Troy kept his eyes trained on the gray thing in the snow. As he moved closer, he suddenly became aware that that moving gray thing looked a lot like a knitted cap.

"Holy..." he trailed off, and since he was so close now, that's when he heard the muffled screaming. Realization dawned on him and he quickly dropped the camera and was about to reach out for the moving cap but stopped short when he saw his camera disappear under the snow next to the beanie. The soft area of snow around that spot reminded him a lot of quicksand.

"Chad- camera- someone- _quicksnow!?!_" Troy screamed back at his friend who then quickly scrambled to his feet. You knew something was wrong when Troy started babbling like an idiot and made no sense.

"What is it?!"

Troy didn't answer, but instead reached out and grabbed what was now undoubtedly a knitted beanie. He tossed it behind him and, careful not to fall into what he now figured was a snow filled ditch (gully), began clawing at the snow. Chad ran to his side.

"What did you find!?"

"Dont'-talk-just-shovel!" Troy grunted. Chad didn't have to be told twice, he quickly began moving snow out of the way.

"Careful, don't fall in!" Troy managed to get out also. Chad gave him a quick look of confusion but continued anyway. It was only a few seconds before they'd unconvered the head and shoulders of a........woman.

"Miss, are you okay?! Are you conscious?! Are you-" Troy instantly started.

"I'm fine!" she spoke. "Please, just...just _get me out of here_!"

Her lips were a bit on the blue side, and her entire face was pale and wet. The bottom half of her blonde hair was also wet and had clumps of white snow clinging to it....

and still, Troy couldn't help but notice how breathtakingly beautiful she was anyway.

Chad watched the scene in utter _shock._

"Can you move your arms?! Can you give me your hand? Can you-"

She wriggled around a little bit, and with some effort, she was able to raise her right arm out of the blanket of snow that surrounded her. Troy immediatley thrust his own arm out, wrapping his gloved fingers around her wrist and pulling her out easily. He was strong, and she was pretty light anyways.

"Whoa!" she cried upon being yanked out of the snow filled pit of what would have been her doom. He'd yanked her so hard that both of them landed backward on the ground on top of each other.

Their eyes locked, brown meeting blue, their faces just inches apart.

"I....um...." she shivered even though she was wearing a heavy black winter jacket as a strong, cold gust of wind blew by.

"Thanks," she managed and rolled off of him. Troy sat up. He watched her carefully as she attempted to brush snow off herself.

"You know, it was a lot easier to lift my arm up when the top half of my body was free," she commented, not really knowing what else to say. She felt stupid, embarrassed, and not to mention- cold as hell, but also thankful, grateful, and lucky at the same time. She could have froze to death or even suffocated or something in that damn ditch.

Chad cleared his throat, finally getting over his initial shock. "Um...you're beanie," he said, picking this mystery woman's cap off the ground and handing it to her. She stared at it in all it's snow covered glory, but took it anyway and dejectedly muttered a thank you.

"What were you doing in there?" Troy wanted to know, standing up and holding his arm out to her once again to help her to her feet. She let him help her up and then snatched her soaked gray scarf that matched her cap off her neck and shoulders before sending Troy an icy glare.

"I just decided to hang out, you know. I love spending all my free time in snow filled gullies!" she told him, her voice dripping with obvious sarcasm. She rolled her eyes. "I _fell _in, obviously. I thought there was _ground _beneath that stupid heap of snow, but it turned out to be a _pit_."

"How long where you in there for?" Troy wondered, keeping calm and sincere while she had just snapped at him. But hey, she _was_ the one who'd just been trapped under a gigantic pit of snow, so she did kind of have a right to be pissed off. But still, he'd kind of also just saved her life. Maybe he'd remind her of that later, though...once she calmed down a bit.

"I don't know. Ten minutes?" she shrugged, ripping off her wet gray gloves. "Fifteen, maybe?" She seemed to have a black and gray color scheme going. Her hat, scarf, and gloves were all gray, while her coat and boots were black. The only other-colored thing was her skinny jeans, which were a dark denim blue.

Troy stared at her, knowing that she was obvious very cold. Who could stand being trapped under snow for fifteen minutes?

"That's horrible...um...don't you have a backpack or anything? If you don't mind my asking, what are you doing up here all alone, miss?" he asked politely.

"It was dragging it along and it fell in with me. I let go of it when I was in there and I don't know where it went," the woman who looked about Troy's and Chad's age explained, half feeling that she owed the man who just saved her life some kind of explanation about _something_.

"And anyway, this was my first time hiking...I just thought it might be fun...boy, was I _so_ freaking _wrong_!" she said bitterly, shaking her head.

"And you didn't think to bring anyone with you? You know- in case something like _this_ happened?" Troy asked, gesturing to her wet, shivering self.

"Okay is this like twenty questions or something?! 'Cause I'd really appreciate it if you would not point out my stupidity," she snapped, firmly planting her hands on her hips. Troy stared at her, trying to hold back his smirk. She was pretty hot when angry.

"Sorry, I wasn't trying to," he muttered, glancing over at Chad who was staring down into the pit of snow Troy had pulled her from.

"I'm Troy Bolton, and I don't think you're stupid," he said, politely offering his hand to her after taking his gloves off. "That, over there, is Chad."

She gave a short sigh and shook Troy's warm, open hand and instantly felt a little bit warmer herself. She could only imagine how cold and clammy her own hand felt to him.

"Sharpay Evans," she told him. "And thanks. Look, I'm sorry that I'm probably acting like a bitch, I'm just... not feeling well."

"Yeah, being trapped under a bunch of snow _has_ been known to do that to a person," Troy smirked, an amused twinkle appearing in his eye. She quickly dropped his hand, noticing they were still holding each others. Troy casually shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans.

"Are you making fun of me?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. Troy chuckled, taking off his own cap and running a hand through his hair. Sharpay watched him do that and had to hold herself back from doing it to him herself.

"A little bit, yeah," he admitted. "Hey, how about some coffee?" he offered quickly before she could say anything. Without waiting for an answer, he turned away from her and walked back over to where he and Chad had left their backpacks and other junk.

"You have coffee?" she asked, following him.

"Yep. Here, you look like you could use some," he said, pouring a cup from his thermos and handing it to her. She smiled at him gratefully for the first time and gladly accepted his offer.

"Thanks," she said, raising the cup to her purple-ish lips.

"How about you, Chad?" Troy then called over to his friend who for some reason was still staring at the pit of snow. "You want any?"

"No thanks man, I've got my own, it's cool," he responded.

"So, what about you, macho man?" Sharpay asked Troy with a small smile and an eye roll. "Why are you up here?"

"I'm into photography," he explained while reaching into his backpack and pulling out a small rolled up blanket.

"So you're taking pictures of the mountain?" she asked, taking another drink of her coffee and watching as he unrolled it and set it down on the snow. He sat down and motioned for her to do the same. She eagerly plopped down next to him.

"Well, I was, but I kind of dropped my camera somewhere in the snow," Troy told her, drinking from the thermos and not mentioning that he probably wouldn't of dropped his camera had it not been for saving _her_.

Meanwhile, Chad was over still in the same spot trying to figure out how to retrieve his friend's camera for him. He'd watched it fall from his hands earlier, and wanted to get it back for him. After all, they didn't come all this way up Mount Baker for nothing! But the problem was, he didn't know how deep the pit was, and didn't want to risk falling in as well as Sharpay. But since the camera was just a medium sized piece of equipment rather than a person, it couldn't have gone in too deep, right?

Maybe if he just reached in....

"That was smooth of you," Sharpay said with light sarcasm. Troy just shrugged, deciding to change the subject.

"How much farther up the mountain are you going?" he asked.

"Zero. I lost all my stuff and I'm not really in the mood for taking any more falls, if you know what I mean," she replied.

"Well, you could go on with us, if you wanted. I'm already hero of the day, so why not fulfill my duty? I wouldn't mind helping you out again if such a thing happened," Troy grinned. "Really, hon, it's no trouble."

"Hero of the day? Wow. _Someone_ thinks a little much of themselves," Sharpay giggled. "Besides, didn't you just finish saying you lost your camera? So what's the point in continuing?"

"A little hike never did anyone harm."

"Um, HELLO?! Yes it did! ME!" she exclaimed in a "duh" tone of voice.

"Yeah, but you're just a newbie. Me? I'm a pro at this climbing stuff," Troy said with a nonchalant wave of his hand. "It's a piece of cake, really," he teased.

"Quit trying to make me feel helpless and pathetic," Sharpay said, brushing him off and quietly drinking her coffee. She was beginning to feel a lot better now.

"I'm just messin' with ya, Sharpay," Troy told her. She didn't respond, she just ignored him and kept on sipping her drink, avoiding his eyes.

"Aw and now she's mad," Troy said playfully.

"I'm not mad," Sharpay insisted, "I just don't believe in engaging in conversation with immature men that are full of themselves."

"Oh, so I'm immature now, huh? Thirty seconds ago I was your hero!" Troy laughed.

"Yeah, according to _you_, tough guy," she responded flatly.

"Well, you're certainly not wrong about the tough guy part."

"So did you just grow up loving yourself?" she cracked, "Or did you just randomly become that way?"

"Well actually," he gave a short sigh, "I usually only act that way around beautiful women."

"Oh really?" she smiled, softening up a little more. "Why is that?"

"How else am I supposed to impress them?"

"Hm, well I guess saving their life could probably get you brownie points ."

"Yeah, I guess I would say that's pretty important....Frosty."

"Frosty?" Sharpay repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Did you seriously just compare me to a talking snowman?"

Troy shrugged, his smile growing. "Well, you might as well be."

"What is _that _supposed to-" Sharpay started.

"Hey Troy!" the voice interrupted their playful teasing- otherwise known as flirting. Both of their eyes shifted over to Chad.

"I got your camera, man!" he told his friend, proudly holding up the snow covered photo taker Troy had lost, as if it were a trophy made of gold. "Still works too!"

"Dude how'd you get that without falling in!?" Troy wondered in amazement.

"Very carefully," was Chad's response.

"Falling into _what_?" Sharpay asked Troy, that's when she was struck by realization. "Oh no...the gully?" she shook her head. "You said you dropped that thing in the snow....you didn't say you did it trying to save me. Did you?"

"Guilty."

"Well, thanks, you _must _be a pretty decent guy if you were willing to sacrifice your camera fulll of pictures to save some random stranger," she smiled.

"It's OK Sharpay, you're really not _that_ strange, only kind of," Troy said and laughed at the partially offended look that crossed her face.

"You're not very good at handling compliments, are you?" she mumbled, taking a long sip of coffee.

"Well, actually, I-"

"In that case, I think you're an obnoxious, self-righteous, big-headed, stuck up, immature little-"

"It's good to know you think so highly of me," Troy interrupted with playful sarcasm.

"Glad I could help boost your self image," she spat with actual sarcasm.

"Thanks, it means so much," he replied, pouring more coffee into her cup.

Meanwhile, Chad was standing over in his usual place messing with Troy's camera. He accidentally pressed the button to take a picture, he knew because he heard the click.

"Oops," he mumbled, wishing there was some way to look at all the pictures taken on the roll of film in the camera so far. He figured, hey, why not look at them now? It's not like he had anything better to do while he waited for Troy to finish chatting it up with barbie girl in a winter wonderland over there.

But since it was one of those big fancy weird professional photographer type cameras, there was no way to see the pictures taken until they were developed back in Troy's office.

"Hey, we done for the day or are you still looking to climb up further?" Chad asked, walking up to Troy and Sharpay, sick of playing around with the camera.

"Actually I think I'm gonna make sure this one here makes it back to her car OK," Troy answered, standing up. "Then we can leave, too."

He held out his hand to help Sharpay up, but she waved it away and stood up herself.

"I'm not a pregnant whale, Bolton. I am perfectly capable of standing and walking to the parking lot by myself," she said, rolling her eyes. "I'm not totally helpless. I don't _need_ you or your help," she scoffed, handing him his cup back.

"Ouch," Chad commented with a smirk, leaning down to pick up his backpack.

"Fine, then you have fun falling in a pit of snow again, and this time, I won't be around to save you," Troy said, capping his thermos. "But that shouldn't matter, since you don't _need_ me or my help anyway."

He then stuffed the blanket back into his own backpack, zipped it up, and stuck his arms through the straps.

"See you around, Sharpay," he said and started walking back down the mountain. Chad was already a few fet ahead of him.

Sharpay stared after them, her breath quickening in panic. The thought of being alone hadn't bothered her yet until she realized just then that she _was_ alone, and what if another ditch filled with snow _did_ take her by surprise and she fell in again on the way down, like Troy had said? And even worse, what if she never ended up seeing him ever again? Especially since they'd ended it just now on that not-so-friendly note?

So, maybe he seemed a little conceited to her- then again, he had just been playing around anyway, right? Either way, he still actually was a pretty nice guy who _had_ saved her life, and maybe even though he didn't seem to handle recieving compliments well- he wasn't all that bad at giving them. Not to mention the fact that he was extremely handsome.

She _did_ want to see him again, sometime after today.

_I wonder where he lives?..._

"Wait!!" she called after him, he was a lot farther away now and barely in her line of vision. She quickly ran after him without thinking.

Troy turned at hearing Sharpay calling out to him. Somehow he knew that she'd change her mind- he wouldn't _really_ leave her there like that. He'd saved her once, and somehow he had a feeling he'd have to do it again...

He was right, because then, right at that moment he saw her running quickly down the icy, snowy, _slippery _mountain...and she fell.

Troy quickly dropped his backpack and ran back up to her. When he reached her, she was lying on her back in the snow, groaning in pain.

"Are you OK?" he asked, squatting down to her level.

"I hit my head on something hard," she groaned, closing her eyes tightly.

"It was probably a rock under all the snow...either that or a chunk of ice," Troy guessed. "Can you sit up?"

"No."

"You'll be fine, I promise," he said, standing back up in front of her. He grabbed her arms and pulled her into a sitting position.

"Hey!" Sharpay exclaimed, taken off guard. "Are you _trying_ to make me puke, Bolton? 'Cause I'm feeling a little light headed and it doesn't help when you yank me up like that."

"If it weren't for my 'yanking', you'd of been a frozen popsicle under ten feet of snow by now," Troy replied, sitting back down next to her. Sharpay opened her mouth to respond, but he quickly started talking again so as not to hear whatever sarcastic comeback was sure to have come from her mouth.

"Let me see your head."

"Why would you want to-" she started.

"Okay, you have a small bump on the back here but it doesn't look like anything serious. Like I said already, you'll be fine," he interrupted her, inspecting a small bump on the back of her blonde head.

"Does this hurt?" he asked, pressing it ever so gently.

"Ow! Yes it hurts, you idiot. Quit pretending like you know what you're doing. No one's asking you to play doctor here," Sharpay snapped, hoisting herself to her feet and attempting to brush clumps of snow off the back of her now slushy, white coat.

"You know, if I weren't afraid you'd fall or something _again,_ I would walk away right now," Troy smirked, adding emphasis to 'again.'

"Haven't I already clarified that I don't need you?" Sharpay said. There was a difference between need and want. But, maybe she was somewhat in denial.

"Then, you wouldn't care if I _did_ just leave?" Troy asked, his smirk growing. Oh, he had her now!

Sharpay didn't respond at first. She just turned away from him and started-- in a slower, more careful manner then before, down the mountain. Troy smiled after her retreating form.

After several seconds of her careful pace, Sharpay turned back to him with a small smile and asked in her sweetest, most inviting voice;

"You coming?"

Troy chuckled to himself and followed after her.

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**Part II should be up soon..**

**and we skip a bit into the future.**

**:)**


	2. Part II: Tis the Season!

H**e**l**l**o **a**g**a**i**n**!

Yeah, so first of all, sorry this is a few days...overdue. My goal was to get it posted before or on Christmas, but then it turned out being a lot longer than I'd intended, and anyone who has read my stories should know that I've not been a very fast updater these days. :/

On a more optimistic note...at least I got this posted before the new year crept up on us! So, I guess it's still er...''in season'', if you will. ;P

**Disclaimer: **Disney owns High School Musical. All I own is the plot of this story and Kory and Cassidy Bolton. :)

**ENJOY** (:

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**'Fall'-la-la-la-la..**

**_Part II- Tis the Season_**

_**T**_he rays of sunshine that shone brightly through the open miniblinds, even at such an early hour, are what woke her from a peaceful sleep that morning. Sharpay's face twisted into an annoyed scowl at the light penatrating through the window into her eyes behind her eyelids. Groaning, she turned her entire body around where her face collided with something warm, hard, and comforting- the bare chest of her husband. She smiled to herself, snuggling into his chest. She was prepared to fall back into a deep, much needed sleep, when-

"MOMMY! DADDY! WAKE UP! _Santi Claus came_! Kory said he wouldn't, but Kory don't know anything! I knew Santi Claus would come! I just knew it!"

The thrilled voice of the hyper four year old rang excitedly through the master bedroom, damaging the warm, peaceful silence that had laid in the room just seconds beforehand.

At first, Sharpay tried ignoring her child- pretending like she was still very much asleep, but that didn't quite work because that's when four year old Cassidy Bolton started jumping up and down on her parent's king-sized bed like a hyper monkey on a banana overload and bursting into a chant of "WAKE UP SLEEPYHEADS!"

But it was really just a serious case of Christmas fever, and you'd have to be deaf and numb to be able to sleep through the jovial cries and movement of a pre schooler on Christmas morning.

Sharpay sighed, forcing herself to sit up. She blinked a few times and rubbed her eyes to get the sleep out of them.

"Cassidy Anne Bolton, how many times must I tell you never to jump on the bed? You could fall and hurt yourself, you crazy little monkey!" Sharpay playfully scolded, smiling at her daughter and ruffling her hair who had ceased her bouncing. "Remember what the doctor said when mommy called him."

"No more monkeys jumping on the bed! I know mommy, but it's _Christmas _and you and daddy wouldn't get your sleepy heads up!" the tiny brunette explained to her mother, as if she were truly insane for not waking up immediatley on Christmas morning. She, herself, had hardly slept a wink.

"How could you sleep knowing that Santi Claus was in our living room last night eating the gingerbread cookies we had made and set out for him, mommy?! And while wudolph was waiting for him right above us on the roof to return to the sleigh?!" Cassidy questioned her mother in amazement.

Sharpay just laughed as her husband finally sat up next to her.

"Ooh, I heard cookies mentioned," Troy said with a sleepy smile.

"Sorry daddy, Santi Claus ate all'a them already. I looked! There were three, and now there's none," Cassidy informed her father.

"He did?" Troy asked, narrowing his eyes at his wife, who giggled and mouthed "Oops." This year, she was 'Santa Claus', which is why she was still pretty tired- she'd spent a little over an hour last night at about one in the morning arranging all the presents for her kids perfectly. Troy hadn't helped out much this year...he'd just filled the stockings and crashed right away.

"Come on Troy, can you really blame Santa? He loves my homemade gingerbread man cookies just as much as you do, and don't act like you wouldn't eat them all if you could," Sharpay smiled. She really did make the best holiday treats- cookies, pies, you name it.

"Yeah, yeah. Just promise you'll make more later," Troy winked before turning his attention to their daughter.

"Where's your brother, squirt?"

Cassidy frowned and started to tell him not to call her squirt, but stopped when her big brother came in.

"Haha Kory, Santi Claus _did_ come and you said he wasn't gonna!" Cassidy said, sticking her tongue out at him. Six year old Kory Bolton rolled his blue eyes and joined his family on his parent's bed.

"I meant he wouldn't come for you cuz you pinched me last week! How do you know the presents aren't all mine?!" Kory shot back at his sister while snuggling into his mother's side. He was a total mama's boy...Sharpay just wished he would be one forever, but she knew that in six years, he probably wouldn't be any longer and right now, she hated the thought of that.

"Ya cuz you bit the head off my barbie, butthead! And I know they're mine cuz Santi Claus wouldn't give _you_ pink wrapping paper!"

"Cassidy, no calling your brother butthead or Santa really _won't _come next time. Remember, he's making a list a checking it twice, so you need to be a good girl all year round," Sharpay told her daughter, who looked horrified at the thought of Santa not coming to visit her next year. "And Kory, no eating your sister's barbies, either! The same rule applies to you, too."

"But _mo-om_-" the six year old started.

"No buts, Kor."

"Fine," he huffed.

"Daddy, can we pweaaseee go open presents now?" Cassidy then asked her father, giving him the best puppy dog look she could muster. While her brother was a mama's boy, she was a daddy's girl and she knew the effect she had on him, too. There was no way her father could resist her when she gave him the big brown-eyed puppy dog look.

"Of course we can, princess," Troy said, smiling at his adorable little daugher.

"Yea!" the four year old exclaimed happily, pulling on her dad's arm in failed attempts to drag him out of bed. "Come on daddy! Let's go see what Santi Claus brought!"

"How about daddy and I meet you down there in five minutes?" Sharpay compromised, interrupting.

"OK but pllllleeeaasssseee hurry!" Cassidy said, droning out the 'please', before shooting out of the room with Kory right behind her.

"I swear, she is on a sugar overload that's never going to wear off!" Sharpay laughed in reference to their daughter when the kids were gone.

"She's just a happy kid," Troy smiled. Sharpay nodded in agreement, yawning.

"I am _so_ tired, it's not even funny," she muttered, really wanting nothing more than to fall right back in bed and take her husband with her.

"Yeah me too, but we'd better to get downstairs before those two get even more antsy," Troy said, knowing fully well that Kory and Cassidy were probably downstairs already waiting impatiently for their parents to join them. The rule in the house was that no one was allowed to actually start opening any presents on Christmas until the whole family was in the room. The same rule had applied when Troy was a kid, and he remembered always being the first one downstairs at about six thirty in the morning and wanting nothing more than to rip the wrapping paper right off the boxes the minute he saw them.

Currently, it was only seven AM, and already pretty light outside- with no traces of snow. The Boltons were currently residing in Albuquerque, and had been for the last several years. When Troy and Sharpay first got married a year after they'd met, they'd stayed in Washington for another two years and then moved to New Mexico where Troy had been raised and where his parents Jack and Lucille still lived, when Sharpay found out she was pregnant. Troy and Sharpay had decided back then that they wanted their kids to be raised near their grandparents so they'd always have an extra close connection with them. Family was very important to the Boltons. In fact, they took Kory and Cassidy to visit Jack and Lucille across town every other weekend.

Sharpay's parents Vance and Derby unfortunately lived in New York City as well as her brother Ryan and his wife Kelsi; where she and Troy definitley did not want to raise their children- in the city that never sleeps.

"Yeah, yeah, I suppose," Sharpay mumbled, less than enthusiastic. The thought of getting out of her warm bed did not please her one bit.

"Aw, come on baby; don't be such a Scrooge," Troy said playfully.

"You try waking up at one in the morning to put all their presents all down there," Sharpay responded. Troy chuckled.

"You could have just done it right after we put them to bed."

"Only, they probably weren't seriously asleep then and I didn't want them to sneak downstairs and catch me in the act- crushing all their beliefs of Santa being real," she told him. "When I was a kid, I didn't fall asleep on Christmas eve 'till like two AM, and I could hardly sleep then either. I was too excited. Don't you remember that feeling?"

"Yeah," Troy smiled. "I do."

"Mom! Dad! Are you guys _coming_?!" Kory asked eagerly, suddenly appearing in the doorway.

"We're on our way, Korykins." Sharpay giggled. Cassidy's over excitement seemed to have rubbed off on him. He flashed his parents looks of "please please hurry" and dissappeared from the doorway.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to call our son Korykins?" Troy laughed at his wife.

"What? That's my nickname for him!" Sharpay said defensively.

"It sounds too girly, Pay."

"Oh, shut up, Troy." Sharpay said, lightly punching him in the arm. "Everything sounds too girly to you!"

Troy just laughed again and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close to him.

"You know I'm only joking...kind of. Just drop the nickname by the time he's...eleven," he whispered in her ear.

"I'm not making any promises, but we'll see," she replied with a giggle, burying her face in the crook of his neck.

"Good enough for me. I love you," he told her sincerely.

"I know. I love you, too," she replied, tilting her face up to his. They were centimeters away from sharing a passionate kiss, when all of a sudden-

"Cassidy just poured everything out of her stocking! She says she can't wait any longer."

Sharpay sighed, pulling away from her husband and climbing out of bed.

"Alright, alright! We're coming now," she surrendered. Kory grinned, holding back a "FINALLY!" as he and his mother left the room together. Troy walked over to the dresser where he threw on a blank white t-shirt and a pair of jeans and followed after his son and wife.

"Hey, what are you doing, you little knuckle head?" Sharpay laughed when she walked into the living room upon seeing her daughter rummaging through a pile of toys- the ones small enough to fit in her stocking.

"See! I told you she dumped everything out!" Kory exclaimed, grabbing his mother's hand and pointing accusingly at his sister with his other.

"Did not!" Cassidy exclaimed, playing innocent as she glared at her brother, momentarily taking her attention away from the stocking stuffers.

"Cas, what have I taught you about patience?" Sharpay asked, obviously not buying Cassidy's lie.

"Good things come to people who wait, mommy, I know!... But you and daddy took too long!" the little girl told her mom, forgetting her own lie.

"And that's where the patience needs to come in, babe," Sharpay said, picking her up and tapping her on the nose.

"OK mommy, I'm sorry," Cassidy apologized in a sad voice.

"It's alright honey," Sharpay smiled, now kissing her on the forehead and setting her down just as Troy came in.

"Hey," he greeted his family with a yawn. "Shar, you forgot your camera upstairs, and I know how you are with all your holiday shinanigans. So, here," he said, handing his wife her camera. She was always taking pictures, especially on Christmas- and this year was no exception.

"Thanks Troy," she giggled. "You know me so well."

"Well I should, we've been married eight years," Troy smiled, pecking her lightly on the lips. Neither of their kids noticed since they were now too busy tearing wrapping paper off boxes- they'd both started the very second their father walked into the room.

"Whoa look! Santa brought me a remote control car! Dad check this out- look how cool it is!" Kory exclaimed, haven seen his first gift: a black remote control toy car that was about a foot long.

"Yeah, Santa did pretty good this year, didn't he buddy?" Troy said to his son with a feeling of pride. He'd picked out that car for Kory- he knew he would love it.

"Yeah! And we're just getting started, too!" the thrilled six year old said enthusiastically, reaching for another box.

"Wait Kory, let's see that car of yours right here," Sharpay said, holding up the digital camera.

"Aw mom, no pictures!" the blonde boy groaned. He look a lot like his uncle Ryan- blonde hair a blue eyes, a handsome young man.

"Just a quick one, Kor. Then you can go right back to your presents."

"Fine," Kory said, holding up the electronic toy and smiling while Sharpay snapped a quick picture. As soon as she'd taken the picture, the fake smile left the six year old's face as he set the car down and grabbed another box covered with shiny blue wrapping paper.

"You'll thank me for this later," Sharpay mumbled, snapping another one of him while he wasn't looking.

"Mommy take one of me!" Cassidy said cheerfully, finally noticing her mother with the camera out. The camera was like her best friend- she _loved_ having her picture taken.

"Of course sweetie," Sharpay smiled. Cassidy grinned, holding up a brand new barbie doll complete with accessories and a carrying case that could hold at least eight dolls. Sharpay had of course bought that for her. Cassidy loved barbie dolls- she had a whole row of them sitting on a shelf in her room; all with neatly combed plastic hair, cute little outfits, and jewelry. You could imagine why she'd be upset that her brother bit the head off one of them last week.

For the next hour, Sharpay had no problems taking pictures of a very cooperative Cassidy as she opened up her Christmas presents, but was having a tiny bit of a hassle convincing her son; which is why most of the ones of Kory had to be taken when he wasn't looking. Now, the kids were done opening their presents- and it only took an hour since Sharpay was interrupting them every five minutes for a picture, and they were now still in the living room playing with their new toys. Troy was in the kitchen making waffles and bacon for everyone.

"Pay where's the orange juice?" Troy, who was standing in front of the refrigerator asked as Sharpay came into the kitchen.

"Did you look behind the milk? You know how those kids find it funny to hide things sometimes," she replied as she went and got four plates out of the cupboard.

"Found it! Thanks babe," Troy said, pulling out a carton of orange juice and pouring himself a glass.

"The food should be ready in just a few minutes," he said, following her into the dining room where she set out the plates on the table.

"Okay," she said, turning around to face him. "And I still have to give you your Christmas gift," she told him with a smile, placing her arms around his neck.

"Right here in the dining room? As much as I'd love to, Shar, don't you think we should wait until later tonight when we're upstairs alone?" Troy asked half jokingly with a smirk and a wink.

"Shut up, you know that's not what I meant," Sharpay said, giggling. "But that _is _certainly possible. Just wait until the kids are asleep," she said suggestively, sliding her arms down his back and her hands into his back pockets.

"Whatta you said we put them to bed early then?" Troy asked, rubbing small circles on her back and smiling down at her.

"God, you're just like Cassidy- so impatient. Now I see where she gets it from," Sharpay laughed, shaking her head. "But anyway, I really do have something to give you later. Maybe after we eat breakfast."

"Me too," Troy replied before bringing his mouth down on hers. Thankfully, they didn't get interrupted this time like earlier in their bedroom. They kissed for a long while, until they both reluctantly drew back at the same time from lack of air. Their foreheads were stil touching as they smiled at each other, waiting to catch their breath.

"Yeah," Troy whispered after a minute, "I still deffinitley think we should put the kids to bed a little early today."

Sharpay chuckled, pulling slightly away and flicking him lightly in the head. "I'd of thought you'd be able to control your hormones by now, Troy. But it looks like_ someone_ still isn't passed the horny teenager stage yet!" she said teasingly.

"Hey, those were some of the best years of my _life_," Troy answered. Sharpay frowned and was about to respond when he quickly cut her off as if reading her thoughts because he knew exactly what she was about to say.

"I said _some_, baby. But of course every year since I've been with you has been the absolute best!"

A smirk formed on his wife's face. "Good save... _honey,_" she said, giving his butt a quick pinch before pulling her hands out of his pockets and pulling away completely.

"You better go check on those waffles now," she told him, leaving the dining room to go fetch their children from the living room.

"Hey, you two. Daddy made breakfast, whose hungry?" Sharpay greeted Kory and Cassidy when she walked in to find them still very interested in playing with their brand new toys.

"Me!" Cassidy exclaimed, jumping up- her toys quickly forgotten.

"I am, too!" Kory added, standing up as well. They were at that age where food had to be just about the best thing ever- especially when they had parents like Troy and Sharpay, who were both very good at cooking things for them.

"Great, beacuse there's plenty of waffles and bacon to go around," Sharpay said with a bright and cheery smile as they raced passed her and into the kitchen.

"Mmm, daddy make maffles!" Cassidy said happily as the sweet smell of her dad's cooking filled her nostrils when she entered the kitchen. Anything could really please her these days.

"And bacon," Kory noted, watching as Troy drained the greese from the brown, crispy looking bacon. They hadn't seemed to of heard Sharpay when she'd already just told them what Troy made.

"You bet, kiddos. Now do you guys want orange juice or apple?" Troy asked his kids.

"Apple" the siblings said in unison.

"Apple it is," Troy said, looking at Sharpay who took that as her cue to pull the apple juice out of the refrigerator since she was standing closest to it.

"Thanks, Shar..and would you mind?.." he then asked, gesturing with his hand back and forth from Kory to Cassidy who were already climbing onto the counter, trying to get at the pan filled with bacon. He quickly grabbed his daughter in one arm and set her down on the ground, making her squeal.

"Alright, alright. Come on you two, let's leave Chef Bolton to his work here," Sharpay said with a wink in Troy's direction before grabbing Cassidy's hand as Kory made the smart descision in climbing down off the counter himself before one of his parents had to pull him down from there.

"Yes, but I promise you can all have a taste of my wonderful creations in just a few minutes," Troy grinned at his family. Sharpay rolled her eyes and smiled as she turned around and led Cassidy into the dining room, holding onto her with one hand and carrying the apple juice in the other. Kory followed after them.

"Mommy will you help me up?" Cassidy asked.

"I sure will," Sharpay said, picking her up and sitting her down in the chair around the table that had a stack of books on it so she could see over the table better.

"Thanks," the four year old said as Sharpay kissed her forehead. Kory climbed into the chair next to his sister no problem as Sharpay went back into the kitchen to get them cups for their juice, and silverware since all she'd set out earlier was the plates.

Breakfast was served a couple of minutes later and the family of four spent twenty minutes talking and eating. After those twenty minutes were up, Cassidy and Kory eagerly left to get back to their toys that were now remembered since their stomachs were full, as Troy helped his wife clear the table before going upstairs to brush his teeth and get something else he needed.

Sharpay was in the middle of washing the morning breakfast dishes when she felt a strong arm come around her waist. She gasped in surprise, nearly dropping the breakable plate in her hands as she felt the warm lips on her neck.

"I've told you a thousand times to stop doing that, and you just continue to do it! Why do you enjoy startling me like that?" she huffed, shutting off the running water that was coming out of the facuet, and crossing her arms- pretending that the warm kisses being placed all over her neck were not driving her crazy.

"Because you're so sexy when you're annoyed," Troy replied with a chuckle while sucking on her sensitive flesh. She closed her eyes, drinking in the feeling.

"Fine then, but you're so gonna get it bad the day you make me accidentally break one of these dishes." Sharpay warned him.

"Is that threat or a promise?" he mumbled.

"A little bit of both," she responded, smirking to herself as his lips continued to attack her neck.

"Fine by me, babe. If it's a promise then I really have something to look forward too, and did I ever mention how hot you look when you're angry?" Troy chuckled again. "I can't _wait_ to make you break a dish."

"I can," Sharpay replied, finally turning around to face him. He still had only one arm wrapped around her tightly. "And you're just full of compliments today aren't you?" she smiled, kissing him hard on the mouth. She didn't even notice that he had his other arm behind his back until they pulled away a little while later.

"What're you hiding back there?" She asked finally, trying to reach behind him, but he grabbed her arm in his free hand to stop her.

"Oh, it's nothing," he responded with a smirk while running his thumb over the back of her hand, obviously not caring whether she believed him or not.

"Troy..." Sharpay warned, choosing not too. She kissed him again sweetly. "Come on baby, you know you wanna tell me," she said, running a hand through his hair.

"Oh I will," he assured her. He paused and then added "...I mean, just tell me why I should," he said with a hint of humor in this voice. He was _so_ enjoying this.

"Because you love me so much. Now what is it?" Sharpay asked eagerly.

"Ha, and you call_ me_ impatient!"

"Oh whatever. Just...what is it?"

"Let's go to the living room. You know....to make sure the kids are OK," Troy suggested, changing the subject.

"I'm sure they're fine, Troy. They're just playing with their-"

"I'll show you what it is in there," he interrupted.

"WHAT ARE WE WAITING FOR?! Our children could be _hurt!"_ Sharpay exclaimed, grabbing the arm not behind his back and pulling him in the direction of the living room. Troy couldn't help but burst into laughter at her behavior. He sure had one crazy, sometimes dorky wife, but he loved her for that and more. He loved their playful, dorky relationship and how somehow they always seemed to be laughing about something together.

"See? You were worrying for nothing, hon. The kids are fine. What did I tell you?" Sharpay smiled when they walked- or more like burst into the living room to find Kory and Cassidy just as expected- surrounded by their Christmas gifts.

"Whose worrying?" Troy asked, leading his wife over to the couch were they sat down together. That's when he finally pulled out the thing from behind his back and handed it to her. It was a box just about the size of a computer screen, wrapped neatly in shimmering red gift wrap and had a card labled "Pay" im Troy's handwriting taped on it.

"Merry Christmas baby," he told her with a super sweet smile. "And don't give me that 'you shouldn't have' junk, either. Just open it. But read the card first."

Sharpay laughed, pecking his lips lightly. "Okay Troy, whatever you say," she said, deciding that she would give him the gold watch she'd bought for him right after this. She carefully took the card off the package and ripped it open, just when Cassidy looked up.

"Did Santi Claus bring you a present too, mommy?" she asked, setting down one of her new dolls and crawling over to her parents.

"Santa doesn't come for grown ups, Cassidy! That's gotta be from dad!" Kory told his sister in a "duh" tone of voice, standing up and walking over to the couch. "Mommies and daddies always give each other things on Christmas. It's some mushy grown up thing they do, cuz they always kiss afterwards!"

"Eww!" Cassidy said, thinking about what her brother was saying. Why did adults always have to kiss each other anyway? Couldn't they just hug? What was wrong with hugging? Nothing! That was her own personal favorite thing to do. Why did grown ups have to be so different?

"Yeah just wait until you two hit puberty," Sharpay told them, pulling her son close to her side as Cassidy was hoisted onto Troy's lap.

"The opposite gender is all you'll ever be thinking about!"

"What's opsit gender?" Cassidy asked her mother.

"Big yucky scary boys," Troy said, tickling her in the ribs, making her crack up laughing.

"Mommy can I help read your card from dad?" Kory asked Sharpay, seeing the red, green, and silver glittery card in his mother's hand.

"I'm learning how to read in school and I'm real good at it! I even helped Mrs. Parker read Green Eggs and Ham to the class one time!"

"Sorry buddy, but those words might be a little more complicated than 'I do not like green eggs and ham, I do not like them Sam I Am'," Troy chuckled.

"Troy, don't you dare make fun of your son_,_"Sharpay warned, shooting her husband a glare.

"I wasn't, Shar. But I just think you should know-"

"Don't listen to your daddy, Korykins. Of course you can help mommy read the card," she smiled at her little boy.

"OK the first three words are "Things that go..." Kory read, peeking at the front of the card.

"Sharpay, I'm warning you-" Troy started.

"Nice job, Kor. Do you know what that fourth one says?" Sharpay asked her son, ignoring her husband. She figured, this was good for practice in expanding Kory's knowledge and vocabulary anyway. He studied the word for a minute, before shaking his head quickly.

"No, I don't get that one."

"It says 'together'," she told him.

"OK I see it now! And the next two say 'on Christmas', I could read 'Christmas' anywhere!" Kory said with a grin.

"Right baby, so the sentence says 'things that go together on Christmas'," Sharpay said. "Look at that, Troy. He read the whole sentence and only needed my help on one word!" she told her husband in a "ha ha on you, whatta ya have to say to _that_?" kind of way.

"That's great, Shar. I just don't think that-"

"What does the next word say, sweetie?" Sharpay asked Kory, turning her attention back to him.

"Marshmallows!" the six year old exclaimed. He'd know that word anywhere too. Sharpay smiled. "Good job, hon." she said. Pretty soon they had the whole front of the card sounded out perfectly, and Kory had hardly needed Sharpay's help at all with minor exceptions.

"You want me to read the whole thing together now?" Sharpay asked her son, who nodded. "Yup."

"Alright. _Things that go together on Christmas_," she read. "_Marshmallows and hot chocolate, elves and Santa, red and green, presents and trees, you and me..."_

"SHARPAY, seriously, I really, really, don't think you should-" Troy tried for about the eighth time since they'd started reading the card.

"Hush, Troy," Sharpay shushed him, opening the card. Then, without thinking about it, out loud she read what was on the inside of the card.

"_Naked and out of breath_."

Her eyes widened as soon as she'd read that, and her mouth dropped open. She glanced quickly at Kory, whose face was twisted into confusion. He hadn't understood what that was supposed to mean, all he knew was that he'd heard the word _naked_- which was a very private thing, he knew.

"I don't get it!" Cassidy, who had been listening quietly the whole time, exclaimed from her father's lap. Cards were supposed to be funny and make sense, but that one didn't at all!

"You'll learn later on in life, baby," Sharpay quickly told her daugher.

"TROY!!" she then hollered at her husband, who was desperatley trying to hold back a laugh. He was literally biting his tongue, knowing he was about to be chewed out.

"What are you trying to do?! _Corrupt_ our children's minds!?!!"

"Of course not, Pay!" Troy quickly said, clutching Cassidy tightly and sinking back into the couch as if she might serve as his shield or body guard if his wife tried to kill him. He paused before suggestively adding "...Just yours," with a wink, hiding his smirk behind his daughter's small head.

"Oh this is no time for that!" Sharpay exclaimed, shaking her head. Kory was busily studying the card, trying to figure out what it meant.

"My _god_, I can't believe I just read that out loud," Sharpay hiss whispered at her husband.

"I tried to warn you!" Troy laughed.

"Well at least they're still young and innocent.." she muttered, gently taking the card from Kory and placing it on the coffee table in front of the couch.

"Can I help take off the wrapping paper?" Cassidy asked, forgetting about the Christmas card.

"Sure," Sharpay said, and then narrowed her eyes at Troy. "Unless you're _father_ has something he needs to tell us first."

"Nah, I'm good. Don't worry hon, it's safe!" Troy promised with an amused chuckle, playing with a strand of his daugher's brown hair- almost the exact color of his own.

"Then go for it," Sharpay told the four year old, who then instantly started shredding the gift wrap off the box. Underneath the shiny red paper was a white cardboard box.

"How about we let mom take it from here?" Troy said, nudging Cassidy, who nodded and let her mom have it. Sharpay curiously opened the flap on the side of the rectangular box, and pulled out what it contained inside.

"Wow," she commented, staring in a mixture of awe and surprise at what Troy had given her.

"Do you like it?" he asked hopefully. She grinned.

"Are you kidding? Of course I do! I _love_ it. But...who took it? I don't remember this being taken. Where did you get it?" she wondered. It was a framed photo of them in black and white. It was the very first day they met almost nine years ago on Mount Baker. Sharpay smiled, remembering back to that day- a mixture of one of the best and worst days of her life. The worst because she could have almost died that day, and she'd never been so cold in her entire life as she was that day trapped under all that snow. But it was also one of the best, because it was the day she met Troy- her hero. She could still remember every little detail of what had happened that day, except for that picture being taken of them.

In the picture, neither Troy nor Sharpay were even looking at the camera. They were sitting down on the snowy surface of the moutain, looking elsewhere- Troy was smiling, pouring something into a cup that Sharpay was holding, and she was kind of half smiling, looking at him. Even back then, there was this unmistakable gleam in both their eye's that was pure admiration of the other. Even in the black and white effect that had been added in the editing of the photo, you could see the admiration in their eyes.

But who had taken it?

"Well, you know how I had that big bulky camera of mine up there with me on the mountain?" Troy asked Sharpay, who nodded.

"Of course, you were a photographer taking pictures of Mount Baker. I remember that part."

"Yeah, and remember how I dropped it in that ditch, and Chad got it back for me?"

Chad. Of course. How could she forget about Chad? Troy's best friend had been with him on the mountain that day, but since Sharpay had hardly spoken to him back then, she'd almost completely forgotten that he'd been there, too.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, I do."

"I guess he took it by accident or something. A few days after the little...mountain incident," Troy chuckled at the memory, "when I was back in my office looking over the pictures I'd taken, I found that one. Then I called up Chad and asked him about it, but he didn't seem to know anything about it. Then he said he accidentally pushed the button to take a picture when he was messing around with the camera, so this one of us had to be the one he'd unintentionally snapped."

"But it's a perfect snapshot," Sharpay observed, studying the wonderful photo. It was great to have a picture of them on the first day they'd met! "How could it be taken by accident?"

"I'm not sure, Pay." Troy shrugged.

"Well, alright. New question: how come you didn't give this to me before?" she wondered.

"I was waiting for the right moment," Troy smiled.

"and it took you nearly nine years to find the "right moment?" Sharpay asked, disbelieving.

"I'm a little slow sometimes, Shar."

"Yeah, no arguements here." Sharpay laughed. "But thank you for this, Troy. I really love it, I'm going to hang it up right away."

"Mom, where was that taken?" Kory asked, pointing at the picture. Just now he'd been hearing his parents talking about pictures and mountains and his uncle Chad. They were acting like something was so important about this one picture- he'd seen tons of pictures of his parents before. What made this one any different?

"Well, Korykins," Sharpay smiled. "That right there, was the first day your mom and dad met. In fact, it was taken probably within the first ten minutes we met."

"How?" Cassidy joined in, meaning, how did they meet each other?

"It's a long, _cold_ story..." she mumbled.

"We were on a mountain, and let's just say that your mom was in need of a little help that day." Troy chuckled.

"and you helped her, daddy?" Cassidy asked.

"That's right, squirt."

"Were you OK, mom?" Kory asked, worried at the thought of his mother being hurt.

"Yeah, just a bit cold, but everything turned out just fine." Sharpay smiled, ruffling his hair. "And your dad was so kind as to share a thermos full of coffee with me," she added, smiling at Troy.

"To help you get warm?" the six year old asked.

"Exactly. He was being a gentleman, and I know I can count on you to be one too when you're older," Sharpay told her son.

"Yeah. in fact, you can start right now, buddy. Why don't you and your sister help each other take all your toys upstairs?" Troy said.

"OK, I can be a gentleman, too! Just like dad!" Kory said to his parents, jumping off the couch. "Come on Cassidy," he said. Troy set her down on the floor. The siblings ran over to where they'd left everything and instantly started gathering up things to take upstairs.

"Nice way to get rid of them, Troy." Sharpay said jokingly as the kids left the living room with as much items as their tiny arms could hold. They'd obviously have to make a few trips..

"Not get rid off. Just distract momentarily," Troy smiled in response,draping an arm across her shoulders.

"Distract? What for?" she asked. He smiled and kissed her in response. Sharpay closed her eyes, melting into the kiss. Even after several years of being with him, his sweet loving kisses still made her swoon.

"So I could say 'you're welcome' for the gift," Troy said when they pulled away a little while later.

"Well then, I guess I haven't exactly offered a proper thanks yet," Sharpay said, and kissed him again. They broke away a few seconds later at the sounds of little bare feet against the floor- a sign that Kory and Cassidy were back. They didn't even look up as they gathered more presents and shot out of the living room again.

"We really spoil those two, don't we?" Sharpay sighed when they were gone.

"So? They're still little, we're allowed to spoil them rotton at least until they hit double digits!"

"Troy," Sharpay said, giving him a "you've-got-to-be-kidding-me" look.

"Okay," he gave in. "Age nine!"

"Whatever. I just don't want them growing up thinking they can get whatever they want in life. My parents never really taught me not to take everything for granted- and all through high school I was the spoiled bitch of the school." Sharpay sighed sadly. "It wasn't until college were I kind of woke up and matured a bit more."

"That wasn't too evident the day this picture was taken," Troy teased, tapping the photo of them that was still on Sharpay's lap.

"Shut up," she hit him lightly in the arm.

"Aw, you know I'm only kidding, baby," he said, pressing his lips to her temple.

"Yeah, yeah..." she brushed him off. "I just hope were not raising spoiled children."

"We're not. They're still so little- Kory's barely started elementary school last year!" Troy assured her with a laugh. "You're a great mom, Pay, and those two are gonna grow up to be two of the greatest people the world's ever seen; they already are, and they've got a long way to go."

"Yeah...you're right,." Sharpay smiled. He could always make her feel better no matter what, "and you're a great daddy, Troy."

"Aw," he grinned. "I know."

"God, you're so full of yourself. What ever happened to thank you?" Sharpay laughed at her husband, shaking her head.

"Oh, right; thanks," he said, wrapping both arms around her, pulling her closer.

"I love you," she said, pressing her face against his warm chest as she fingered the picture frame in her lap.

"I love you too, Shar." Troy responded before kindly adding "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," Sharpay responed with a giggle, hiding her smile against his chest.

Life couldn't get any better than this.

* * *

**Merry (five days late xD) Christmas, and Happy (early) New Year!**

**Dang, I really do suck at timing, don't I? I'm either too early or too late. Psh.**

**Whatever, hope ya'll liked it anyways.**

**FEELTHETROYPAYLOVE.**

**And once again, Jenna, Abbii and Jamey- this is 'specially for you three. (: Ily!**

**also, I'd like to give a special thanks to troypazash- whose F-ADORABLE! (freaking adorable) story It's A Wonderful Life was a big inspiration to me in writing the cutesy family stuff. (or at least my attempt at making it cutesy. ahaa.) So, thanks. :) and sorry if it seemed like I accidentally copied anything from your story...if I did I didn't mean too, and mine could never really match up anyway. ;P**

**Please review!**


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